Scarlet Roses
by Gizen-Hime
Summary: Set in the Victorian Age, the Thief King is a world renowned actor. But after performing in the play Macbeth, his ancient past starts to return to his memories, and is slowly corrupted in the chaos of his past life.


**Prologue**

The noise was as clear as day: thousands of people's whispers and muttering. The stage was set…everything was ready. Except for the actors themselves.

However, one actor was more prepared more than anything. He wasn't afraid to perform for the crowd; he had been an actor for far too long to let nervousness get the best of him. He stepped forward and walked toward the crimson curtains.

_Let the show begin_, he mused, his eyebrows furrowing and his tan lips forming a devious smile. The curtains began to open and he was able to see the audience, all of them in anticipation of the play bestowed for their eyes.

**Chapter I: Induction**

Never before had the crowd been such a diverse group for a play. Men and women of all ages were scattered across the rows and aisles. Even the King himself seemed to be in the troupe's presence this evening, sitting in the nosebleed section of the wings. The young man was pleased. Holding up one of his hands, he slowly witnessed the volume go from a soft mummer to silence. Bringing it back to his side, the man began to introduce the play for the night.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he began, his voice booming and enthusiastic. "Welcome to our rendition of the famous Shakespearian play, _The Tempest_. Now, I warn you, while this play _may_ seem comical at first, there _are_ things I this play that are far too mature for a mere child to witness. So please, if anyone in our audience this evening has brought their children, escort them out at this time." At first, he hoped that people _did_ bring their child with them; it was a foolish thing, after all: _The Tempest_ had attempted rape in it. No child needed to know such a crime at their age; and even if they saw it, they would either not understand what it was or attempt it themselves. Either way, the troupe did not need to get into legal matters over these scenarios. But tonight's crowd had no such thing.

"Really? _No-one_ brought their children…?" he asked shockingly. This brought murmuring to the crowd. "Well no matter; the show must go on." To quickly wrap things up, he threw in, "Please enjoy our performance, and remember: hold your applause until intermission and the end of the play." With that farewell, he walked across the stage and exited to the backstage, where the actors were getting ready for the first act. One of the male actors stepped forward and handed his fellow actor a handkerchief. Watching his comrade wipe off his face, he greeted him.

"That was a _splendid_ introduction," he awed, his blue eyes watching with anticipation.

"Well, I don't know about _that-_" the older actor started, but he was cut off by these words:

"Oh, shut the hell up. That performance was fucking _superb_; no-one could pull that off better than _you_ could."

"Alright, now you're just being a _kiss-ass_, Seth," the tan man teased, watching his comrade laugh. But Seth was right; he was the best the troupe had ever had. And he was proud of that matter.

"But you can't deny that fact," Seth pointed out, wrapping his arm around his worker's shoulder. "I mean, _listen_ to them! They're already applauding; and they're doing it for _you!_"

"Alright, alright," the tan man mused, getting himself out of Seth's grip. "I'll give you that; but do you think they'll even _like_ this play? We've never preformed it before."

Seth had to think this though for a moment: his fellow actor _did_ make a valid point. But regardless of that, he knew the play would be a hit; after all, The Bard himself had written this play hundreds of years ago. There was no way it could be a failure.

"Of course it will," he replied, smirking. "Now, we'll need to get ready for our introductions. Wouldn't you agree?"

Nodding, the elder actor and his comrade turned away and headed farther backstage, in order to prepare themselves for their time in the limelight.

* * *

><p><strong>NOTES<strong>:  
>I might as well say this now: throughout the story, the Thief King's character does not have a given name. He is referred to as "good sirgood man", "my son" (this is only used by his "father") or his ancient Egyptian name "The King of Thieves" (however, this only occurs later in the story). His name is only brought up at the end.

Also, the "Seth" mentioned in this chapter is actually Seto Kaiba, as he is portrayed in this story.  
>Others like him will be "Joseph" (JoeyJonouchi), "Pegasus" (self-explanatory), and the Duke of London (Duke Devlin; also, he is one of the very few characters that keep his English dub name)


End file.
